
Safety features of your vehicle
44
3
How does the air bag system
operate
Air bags are activated (able to
inflate if necessary) only when the
ignition switch is turned to the ON or
START position.
The appropriate air bags inflate instantly in the event of serious
frontal or side collision in order to
help protect the occupants from
serious physical injury.
There is no single speed at which the air bags will inflate.
Generally, air bags are designed to
inflate by the severity of a collision
and its direction. These two factors
determine whether the sensors
send out an electronic deployment/
inflation signal.
Air bag deployment depends on a number of factors including vehicle
speed, angles of impact and the
density and stiffness of the vehicles
or objects which your vehicle hits in
the collision. Though, factors are not
limited to those mentioned above. The front air bags will completely
inflate and deflate in an instant.
It is virtually impossible for you to
see the air bags inflate during an
accident.
It is much more likely that you will
simply see the deflated air bags
hanging out of their storage com-
partments after the collision.
In addition to inflating in serious side collisions, side and/or curtain
air bags will inflate if the sensing
system detects a rollover.
When a rollover is detected, side and/or curtain airbags will remain
inflated longer to help provide pro-
tection from ejection, especially
when used in conjunction with the
seat belts.
In order to help provide protection, the air bags must inflate rapidly. The
speed of air bag inflation is a con-
sequence of the extremely short
time in which to inflate the air bag
between the occupant and the vehi-
cle structures before the occupant
impacts those structures. This speed of inflation reduces the
risk of serious or life-threatening
injuries and is thus a necessary part
of air bag design.
However, air bag inflation can also
cause injuries which normally can
include facial abrasions, bruises and
broken bones because the inflation
speed also causes the air bags to
expand with a great deal of force.
There are even circumstances under which contact with the air
bag can cause fatal injuries, espe-
cially if the occupant is positioned
excessively close to the air bag.
WARNING
To avoid severe personal injuryor death caused by deploying
air bags in a collision, the driv-
er should sit as far back from
the steering wheel air bag as
possible (at least 10 inches
(250 mm) away). The front pas-
sengers should always move
their seats as far back as pos-
sible and sit back in their seat.
(Continued)
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345
Safety features of your vehicle
Noise and smoke
When the air bags inflate, they make a
loud noise and they leave smoke and
powder in the air inside of the vehicle.
This is normal and is a result of the
ignition of the air bag inflator. After the
air bag inflates, you may feel substan-
tial discomfort in breathing due to the
contact of your chest with both the
seat belt and the air bag, as well as
from breathing the smoke and powder.
Open your doors and/or windows
as soon as possible after impact in
order to reduce discomfort and pre-
vent prolonged exposure to the
smoke and powder.Though the smoke and powder are
non-toxic, they may cause irritation to
the skin (eyes, nose and throat, etc). If
this is the case, wash and rinse with
cold water immediately and consult a
doctor if the symptom persists.
Do not install a child restraint on
the front passenger’s seat
Never place a rear-facing child
restraint in the front passenger’s
seat. If the air bag deploys, it would
impact the rear-facing child restraint,
causing serious or fatal injury.
In addition, do not place front-facing
child restraints in the front passen-
ger’s seat either. If the front passen-
ger air bag inflates, it could cause
serious or fatal injuries to the child.
1JBH3051
WARNING - Hot
components
Do not touch the air bag storage
area's internal components
immediately after airbag infla-
tion. The air bag related parts in
the steering wheel, instrument
panel and the roof rails above
the front and rear doors are
very hot. Hot components can
result in burn injuries.
(Continued)
Air bags inflate instantly in the event of collision, and passen-
gers may be injured by the air
bag expansion force if they are
not in proper position.
Air bag inflation may cause injuries which normally include
facial or bodily abrasions,
injuries from broken glasses or
burns by the air bag inflation
gasses.
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3
Air bag warning light
The purpose of the air bag warning
light in your instrument panel is to
alert you of a potential problem with
your airbag system, which includes
side and/or curtain airbags used for
rollover protection.
When the ignition switch is turned
ON, the indicator light should illumi-
nate for approximately 6 seconds,
then go off.
SRS components and functions
The SRS consists of the following
components:
1. Driver's front air bag module
2. Passenger's front air bag module
3. Side impact air bag modules
4. Curtain air bag modules
5. Retractor pre-tensioner assemblies
6. Air bag warning light
7. SRS control module (SRSCM)/
Rollover sensor
8. Front impact sensors
9. Side impact sensors
W7-147
WARNING - Air bag
deployment
When children are seated in the
rear outboard seats of a vehicle
equipped with side and/or cur-
tain air bags, install the child
restraint system as far away
from the door side as possible.
Inflation of the side and/or cur-
tain air bags could cause seri-
ous injury or death to an infant
or child.
OLM039302N/Q
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Safety features of your vehicle
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3
Condition and operation in the front passenger occupant classification
system
*1) The system judges a person of adult size as an adult. When a
smaller adult sits in the front pas-
senger seat, the system may rec-
ognize him/her as a child
depending on his/her physique
and posture.
*2) Do not allow children to ride in the front passenger seat. When a
larger child who has outgrown a
child restraint system sits in the
front passenger seat, the system
may recognize him/her as an
adult depending upon his/her
physique or sitting position. *3) Never install a child restraint sys-
tem on the front passenger seat.
*4) The PASS AIR BAG "OFF" indi- cator may turn on or off when a
child above 12 months to 12
years old (with or without child
restraint system) sits in the front
passenger seat. This is a normal
condition.
WARNING - OCS system
Riding in an improper position
adversely affects the occupant
classification system (OCS) and
may result in the deactivation of
front passenger airbag. It is
important for the driver to
instruct the passenger as to the
proper seating instructions as
contained in this manual. (Continued)
Condition detected by the
occupant classification systemIndicator/Warning lightDevices
PASS AIR BAG “OFF” indicator lightSRS
warning lightFront passenger air bag
1. Adult *1or child age 13 and up*2OffOffActivated
2. Infant or child restraint system with 12 months old*3 *4OnOffDeactivated
3. Unoccupied OnOffDeactivated
4. Malfunction in the systemOffOnActivated
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Safety features of your vehicle
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3
When an adult is seated in the front
passenger seat, if the PASS AIR
BAG “OFF” indicator is on, turn the
ignition switch to the LOCK or OFF
position and ask the passenger to sit
properly (sitting upright with the seat
back in an upright position, centered
on the seat cushion with their seat
belt on, legs comfortably extended
and their feet on the floor). Restart
the engine and have the person
remain in that position. This will allow
the system to detect the person and
to enable the passenger air bag. If the PASS AIR BAG "OFF" indicator
is still on, ask the passenger to move
to the rear seat.
✽ ✽
NOTICE
The PASS AIR BAG "OFF" indica-
tor illuminates for about 4 seconds
after the ignition switch is turned to
the ON position or after the engine is
started. If the front passenger seat is
occupied, the occupant classification
sensor will then classify the front pas-
senger after several more seconds.
B990A01O
Proper position
WARNING
Do not hang onto the front pas-
senger seat. Do not hang any
items, such as a seatback table
or entertainment system, on the
front passenger seatback. Do
not place feet on the front pas-
senger seatback. Do not place
any items under the front pas-
senger seat. Any of these could
interfere with proper sensor
operation.
WARNING - AIR BAG
"OFF" light
Do not allow an adult passenger
to ride in the front seat when the
PASS AIR BAG “OFF” indicator
is illuminated, because the air
bag will not deploy in the event
of a crash. The driver must
instruct the passenger to repo-
sition himself in the seat.
Failure to properly position
yourself may lead to airbag
deactivation resulting in airbag
non-deployment in a collision. If
the PASS AIR BAG “OFF” indi-
cator remains illuminated after
the passenger repositions
themselves properly and the
vehicle is restarted, it is recom-
mended the passenger move to
the rear seat because the pas-
senger's front air bag will not
deploy.
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Safety features of your vehicle
Side impact air bag
❈The actual air bags in the vehicle may differ
from the illustration.
Your vehicle is equipped with a side
impact air bag in each front seat. The
purpose of the air bag is to provide the
vehicle's driver and/or the front pas-
senger with additional protection than
that offered by the seat belt alone. The side impact air bags are
designed to deploy during certain
side-impact collisions, depending on
the crash severity, angle, speed and
point of impact. However, when side
deployment threshold is satisfied at
front-impact, side air bags may
deploy. The side impact air bags are
not designed to deploy in all side
impact situations.
The side impact air bags do not only
deploy on the side of the impact but
also on the opposite side.
The side and/or curtain airbags on
both sides of the vehicle may deploy
if a rollover or possible rollover is
detected.
WARNING
Do not allow the passengers to
lean their heads or bodies onto
doors, put their arms on the
doors, stretch their arms out of
the window, or place objects
between the doors and passen-
gers when they are seated on
seats equipped with side and/or
curtain air bags.
WARNING
The side impact air bag is sup-
plemental to the driver's and
the passenger's seat belt sys-
tems and is not a substitute
for them. Therefore your seat
belts must be worn at all times
while the vehicle is in motion.
The air bags deploy only in
certain side impact conditions
severe enough to cause sig-
nificant injury to the vehicle
occupants.
For best protection from the side impact air bag system
and to avoid being injured by
the deploying side impact air
bag, both front seat occupants
should sit in an upright posi-
tion with the seat belt properly
fastened. The driver's hands
should be placed on the steer-
ing wheel at the 9:00 and 3:00
positions. The passenger's
arms and hands should be
placed on their laps.
(Continued)
ODM032043
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Safety features of your vehicle
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3
❈ The actual air bags in the vehicle may dif-
fer from the illustration.
Side impact and curtain air bags
Side impact and curtain air bags are
designed to inflate when an impact is
detected by side collision sensors
depending on the strength, speed or
angles of impact resulting from a
side impact collision.
Also, the side impact and curtain air
bags are designed to inflate when a
rollover is detected by the rollover sen-
sor.
Although the front air bags (driver’s
front, knee and front passenger’s air
bags) are designed to inflate in frontal
collisions, they also may inflate in
other types of collisions if the front
impact sensors detect a sufficient
frontal force in another type of impact.
Side impact and curtain air bags are
designed to inflate in certain side
impact collisions. They may inflate in
other type of collisions where a side
force is detected by the sensors. Side airbag and/or curtain airbags
may also inflate where rollover sen-
sors indicate the possibility of a
rollover occurring (even if none actual-
ly occurs) or in other situations, inclu-
iding when the vehicle is tilted while
being towed. Even where side and/or
curtain airbags would not provide
impact protection in a rollover, howev-
er, they will deploy to prevent ejection
of occupants, especially those who
are restrained with seat belts.
If the vehicle chassis is impacted by
bumps or objects on unimproved
roads, the air bags may deploy. Drive
carefully on unimproved roads or on
surfaces not designed for vehicle traf-
fic to prevent unintended air bag
deployment.
OVQ036018N
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